I’ve got two Scrivener projects on my iPhone 6 that I created and write on my mac. One, a journal, syncs without problems.
The second, a UK stage play, synced okay until a couple of days but now it doesn’t. I press the sync button but to no avail.
So, obviously, I’ve done something wrong and somehow changed something in this project’s ‘identity’ and IOS doesn’t recognise this project.
Here’s my questions: Can I delete this project from Dropbox and if I do that will it delete it automatically on my iPhone?
If it is deleted, and I presume it is if it’s no longer in Dropbox, then is it possible to upload the project that’s on my mac and, if so, how do i do that or does it happen automatically?
Am I in the realms of the ridiculous? I’m really wandering in a maze now
Any help, suggestions and advice (not too techie, please) would be most welcome.
thanks,
martin.
Please keep in mind that there are three devices involved in this:
Mac
Dropbox server
iPhone
On your Mac you have a Dropbox App that upload and download any changes you make to the Dropbox server.
On the iPhone your Scrivener app is uploading and downloading any changes you make when you press the sync icon.
On the iPhone you probably also have a Dropbox app, which you can use to look at the content on the Dropbox server HD.
If you delete the project on Dropbox from inside your iPhone Scrivener, next time you open your Mac it’s Dropbox app will note that the project was deleted from the Dropbox server and will thus delete it from you Mac’s HD, and then it’s gone.
If you delete the project using the Dropbox app on your iPhone or the web interface, the same thing will happen.
What you do on the Dropbox server will propagate to all involved devices!
First thing to check:
Are your Scrivener projects on the Mac all stored in the same folder? If a project in iOS Scrivener doesn’t sync it usually means that it is actually up to date when it is compared with the version on the Dropbox server and on your Mac, suggesting that you somehow moved the current project on your Mac somewhere else, e.g. by using Save As…and then saved it in another folder that the Dropbox folder that iOS Scrivener is syncing with. So what’s really happening is that on your Mac you are working on another copy of the project than the one syncing with iOS Scrivener.
Yes, I have 5 Scrivener projects in one folder in my Dropbox. I’ve now put the project (UK stage play) that’s not syncing into a folder on its own.
I think you’re right and that the project I’m writing in on my mac I’ve ‘saved as’ something different from the same project that already existed on my iPhone.
But what do I do now? How can I make the project on my iPhone the same as on my mac?
On the Mac, in Finder, simply drag it back to the sync folder, where you have the other projects. Wait for the Dropbox app to sync everything, so you get the green tick mark in Finder, then open Scrivener on your iPhone and sync as usual.
If you need to have them in separate folders, you can drag the whole new folder into the sync folder (in Finder on your Mac) so it becomes a subfolder. On the Mac you will se the folder structure but on the iPhone you will only see all the projects in the sync folder and in any subfolders under that folder.
I have all my Scrivener projects in a Dropbox folder called Scrivener Projects. In that folder I have a subfolder called Scriv Active Projects and on my iDevices that is the folder I have set up as my sync folder in Dropbox settings. So for me the path in iOS Scrivener is:
/Dropbox/Scrivener Projects/Scriv Active Projects
If I want to have a project available on my iPad, I simply drag it to the Scriv Active Projects folder (in Finder on the Mac). If I don’t want to clutter up the projects screen on my iPad or iPhone, I drag some of the projects back out to the mother folder.
Super easy.
I’m not sure what drag the project into the sync folder means - I’m ancient and very much trying to find my way through the dark - but I took all my projects out of Dropbox and onto my desktop.
Then I checked they were the most recent files and put them back into Dropbox.
It seems to have worked. I wrote a couple of lines in the project (UK stage play) that wasn’t syncing and now it is.
What’s strange though is the project ‘Origins’. You’ll see from the screenshot it’s got a sort of ‘no entry’ type sign on it and something abbreviated written below. I assumed this meant it hasn’t been able to sync the project but it’s showing on my iPhone with all the written manuscript intact.
I find it frustrating when something seems to be working when the indications are it isn’t. Life in the 21st century, I suppose.
Anyway, thanks so much for your help.
martin.
